Bang!
A giant axe collided with a fist! The ground beneath them exploded, dust was raised, the cave started to crack, and the mountain shook like it could collapse at any moment. The force from their collision was tremendous!
Nero was taken a few steps back while Saburo had to use his axe to support himself. Nero knit his eyes as his looked at his fist; it trembled! Saburo was forced back to the point where he almost vomited blood. He looked at Nero thinking he too might be in the same state, but was utterly disappointed. Nero only stood there like an immovable boulder with eyes that could be clearly seen from the dust cloud.
Saburo's heart sank. That axe strike looked casual, but it contained an enormous power behind it. If that attack was used against an average martial artist, there's a possibility that they would have their fist shattered instantly, however, the result was different in this case. Was it possible for a fist to have equal power as opposed to that of an axe? In the path of cultivation, it was possible for one to have strong physical abilities, but in this case, that attack also contained Saburo's raw strength. In other words, the power in Nero's fist could comfortably match up to the power behind Saburo's axe attack, and since he couldn't see through Nero's cultivation, there was a possibility that it was greater!
Saburo stared at Nero in disbelief. Only one word echoed in his mind as he looked at Nero's figure which slowly emerged from the dust cloud…
Monster!
Without hesitating, Nero shot forward while striking out with his fist. Saburo reacted timely and swung his axe to meet the incoming fist…
…
Nero was currently enveloped by a tornado while Saburo fiercely slashed his giant axe at the tornado.
"Wind blade!!"
Saburo slashed his axe a few more times before finally stopping.
"I think that one got him." Saburo said, panting and sweating. He looked like he had consumed a lot of Qi.
Suddenly, a pair of green beady lights glistened through the tornado. Seeing this, Saburo's face slightly distorted. He had a vague idea of what would happen next. The tornado slowly dispersed and Nero flew out, landing steadily on his legs. His clothes were tattered and stained with blood, he seemed to have sustained some injuries.
"What technique are you using? It's so annoying." Saburo shouted. Traces of frustration filled his voice.
Nero exhaled a breath of hot air through his mouth and started to circulate his Qi. The Qi within his body roared like a thunderstorm, violent and unstable.
"Shockwave fist!!" Nero shouted and punched the void. Instantly, a terrifying shockwave erupted from Nero's fist, pushing back the air around it. The air churned violently forming what looked like a giant wind fist aiming straight at Saburo.
Saburo was shocked at how powerful the approaching attack was. The speed of the Nero's attack was insanely fast leaving Saburo no room to escape. He didn't have much time and room to dodge, so he could only circulate his Qi to form a defensive wall to block Nero's attack.
Boom!
The shockwave from the collision shook the mountain and sent Saburo flying. Saburo was buried under a pile of rocks and rubble.
The dust hadn't settled yet when Saburo's bust out from the pile of rubble. Using the unsettled dust as a cover, he aimed straight for Nero swinging his axe. Nero's perception had already locked unto Saburo from the second he burst out from the pile of rubble. He launched forward, directly confronting Saburo's attack with his fist…
Bang!!
A terrifying shockwave erupted from the collision of the two martial artists, followed by the sound of metal breaking. Nero and Saburo were sent flying backwards from the force of collision. Nero staggered a bit before stabilizing himself, meanwhile Saburo was sent flying backwards till he hit a wall. Although Nero was standing on his feet, he had lost a lot of energy. His head trickled with blood and his breath became heavier by the second. Saburo lay on the floor, his wounds were not any better. He lifted his axe but found out that it was surprisingly lighter than it was before. Saburo turned to look at his axe, except… there was no axe, only the shaft.
The axe broke!!
Saburo instantly vomited blood. One had to know that Nero fought with no weapon, but Saburo wielded a giant double sided axe. However, his weapon had been shattered by Nero's fists! What type of concept was this!?
Saburo's face distorted from the blazing anger rising fast in his heart. He wished to make Nero suffer endless years of torture, but as it stands, he started to have doubts that it was possible. Him, who led an organization of highly skilled martial artists, that even the five top powers of the Western Earth Kingdom couldn't dare provoke was being pushed into a corner like this by an unknown fellow…
Saburo grit his teeth till more blood poured out from his mouth; he just couldn't accept this reality. He managed to stand on his feet with the support from his axe shaft.
"I have to say, you're much stronger and resilient than I thought; it was my mistake for underestimating you. But don't think you've won yet, I'll settle my scores with you even if I have to burn my life force to do so!"
Saburo had been driven insane by Nero's unfathomable ability to endure the fight till this moment. From the beginning of their fight, Saburo had been on the offensive while Nero either dodged or received his attacks. In terms of Qi consumption, Saburo should be the one at a disadvantage, but Nero shouldn't be any better. To successfully defend any attack, ones defense must be on par or able to subdue the force of the attack.
In a normal rating, if Saburo consumed about 50% of his Qi attacking, then Nero should have consumed about 40% defending. But now, Saburo had spent a great deal of Qi while attacking whereas Nero seemed to show no sign of exhaustion. It was like… his Qi kept growing as they fought! Saburo confirmed this when he looked at Nero and saw that his Qi hadn't depleted even a tiny bit, instead, it was rising to an astronomical level!